Hugh Marston Hefner (April 9, 1926 – September 27, 2017) was an American publisher and playboy. He was best known as the editor-in-chief of Playboy magazine, which he founded in 1953, and as chief creative officer of Playboy Enterprises, the publishing group that operates the magazine An advocate of sexual liberation and freedom of expression, Hefner was a political activist and philanthropist in several other causes and public issues.